The Midlife Crisis of Commander Invincible

A Novel

Neil Connelly

Publication Year: 2013

Once the mighty superhero Commander Invincible, thirty-nine-year-old Vincent Shepherd now faces new enemies: downsizing, a second divorce, and the strains of fatherhood. Decades ago, Vince made a living fighting supervillains, huge irradiated insects, and androids armed with death rays. But when the good guys won the war, heroes like Vince grew obsolete. Certain that his younger wife is starting to find their marriage as frivolous as his old cape, Vince embarks on a scheme to reestablish himself not only as a superhero but as a super dad and a super husband. Confronting former allies with long-buried secrets, he must also battle the same demons we all encounter: doubt, regret, loss, and failure. The Midlife Crisis of Commander Invincible turns a literary lens onto the world of comic book fantasy to reveal the challenges of simply being human.

Cover

Title Page, Copyright, Dedication

Chapter One

I’m flying high over this city that was supposed to be mine. Once, the mere
sight of my black and bronze cape fluttering above would’ve stopped traffic,
spun the heads of all the stunned citizens. Nowadays, even if I streak
through Center Circle at rush hour, I’m lucky if a half-dozen tourists snap
cellphone photos. ...

Chapter Two

As I head toward Little Germany, I try to clear my mind in anticipation
of the emergency. But I can’t shake what happened in the warehouse, the
things I did and the things I was about to do. And strangely, something
still bothers me about King Lear and his lost star. Like me, that guy is
clearly past his prime. ...

Chapter Four

As I approach the HALO, floating and spinning slowly a half-mile over
Kingdom Town, the hangar doors split down the center and begin to recede.
The column of bright light expands, and I see a solitary figure standing
in the back of the landing bay. The planets are finally aligning. ...

Chapter Five

During the glory days of WWII, when the fate of the free world hung in
the balance, the USS Endeavor was recognized as a singular vessel. An
Atlanta Class antiaircraft cruiser, the Endeavor played a crucial role in the
Battle of the Komandorski Islands west of the Aleutian Islands in the Pacific
theater. ...

Chapter Six

A few miles ahead, a white glistening castle that looks disturbingly like
a cathedral rises from the swampland of south Jersey. Titan Spire. The
two-lane highway below me, which I’ve been following since I left the
turnpike, is crowded with minivans and SUVs packed with children and
traveling at unsafe speeds. ...

Chapter Seven

Three hours after I float away from Titanland, I finally locate a landmark to
verify that I’ve arrived in Suffolk County: the big iron bridge below crosses
the river a few miles from my in-laws’. Not that I was ever lost, not really.
Had I stayed over the interstate, I would’ve arrived an hour ago, ...

Chapter Eight

“Trust me,” I tell Thomas, as we stand on the helipad atop the western rim
of the HALO. Behind my teenage son, a red windsock flaps madly, the tail
of a desperate fish. Nate sits snugly on my right forearm, his chubby arms
locked in a death grip around my neck, and I beckon Thomas with my free
hand. ...

Chapter Nine

There’s nothing quite like being surrounded by appreciative fans. But when
you’ve got a four-year-old with you, there’s a danger of being crushed if
things get out of control. To avoid such an event, and to get out of the
cold, I led both my sons through the first open door I could find. ...

Chapter Ten

Approaching the zoo from the air, I see quite the commotion in the parking
lot. There’s a small crowd of people held back by police barricades,
four squad cars, a fire engine, and five news vans topped with satellite
dishes. One is from KQEP, Sheila’s station back in the day. ...

Chapter Eleven

“This may not be helpful,” Gypsy says from my side as we fly. “But the possibility
of capturing Bone Crusher is rapidly diminishing. The spectrum of
outcomes collapses as we approach any given moment. Every second the
future becomes more certain.” ...

Chapter Twelve

The morning of my fortieth birthday, I’m lying in bed awake, waiting for
the sun to rise. The space next to me, where Debbie should be, is empty,
and I’ve been reminded of the months after Sheila and I called it quits, how
I hated sleeping alone again. I’m hoping that soon Nate will wake up, ...

Chapter Thirteen

After leaving the HALO, I touch down in the eastern field of Washington
Park. Holding the long thin box in one hand, I start kicking about the oak
leaves carpeting the grass, looking for a stick the right size. Pigeons take
flight from the nearby walkway. Just beyond them, skate punks in hooded
sweatshirts congregate at the bottom of a steep set of concrete steps. ...

Chapter Fourteen

This is a fact that should upset me, that should suggest all kinds of
things that make me doubt what I’m doing. Back on the Utah salt flats,
when I first tried it on for Ecklar, the process took forever and was awkward
as hell. Today it feels natural, like I’m slipping on a second skin. ...

Chapter Fifteen

I watch the armor burst in a fiery ball—surely bearing witness to my own
death—on a huge flat-screen TV. Impossible as this is, I can’t turn away
from the spectacle—red and orange blooms, flowing billows of black smoke.
It’s enough to knock Clyde on his ass, which pleases me just a bit. ...

Acknowledgments

For core support, I’m grateful for my wife, Beth, as well as our boys, Owen
and James. I hope this book helps them both understand why Dad’s at his
desk when they wake up. I also recognize the keen eye of Warren Frazier for
encouragement and instrumental feedback on early drafts of this story. ...

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